Re: Blood and Iron

Chapter 165 Elsa's Birthday Part II

165  Elsa's Birthday Part II

Bruno didn't exactly hate his brothers. Or at least those who he was still not necessarily on good terms with. Ludwig and Kurt had redeemed themselves in his eyes. Not that the man really took their childhood bullying to heart, as children often lacked the manners, discipline, and overall intelligence to behave themselves accordingly. It was only natural that their own sense of inferiority would compel them to lash out against him. Such was the nature of the inferior, or such was Bruno's perspective throughout his life. But those two men had fought and bled alongside Bruno in the trenches of the Russian Civil War, an experience that had caused them to grow by more than a decade in a single year. Any past grievances Bruno may have held against them were buried with the Red Army, and because of this, he was quite friendly with these two brothers. As for Christoph and Franz, they were old enough to have very little contact with Bruno as a child. Franz was already in high school by the time Bruno was five; he couldn't be compelled to care about some little brat a decade younger than him. The same could be said for Christoph, who saw the bullying that Bruno underwent as the matters of little children that he couldn't care to intervene in. Maximilian was different, however. Perhaps it was because of the old joke that "gingers have no souls," but even though he was in his early teenage years when Bruno was but a toddler, he had always been a right royal cunt. This behavior had persisted even into adulthood, with Maximilian taking every chance he could get to speak ill of Bruno, his wife, and his children. Frankly speaking, the hostility Maximilian had always shown Bruno stemmed from his disapproval of the man marrying a bastard girl. He had more or less believed that Bruno's engagement and later marriage to Heidi was a stain on their family's short-lived noble heritage. Even in a family that had gained its aristocratic status no more than three generations prior, there would always be some privileged twat among their ranks who thought they were better than everyone else because of it. And that spoiled prick was Maximilian. Max had more or less coasted through life on the family's finances and influence, getting a comfortable high-paying job as a government bureaucrat where it didn't really matter whether or not he did his job well, or really at all. Bureaucracy was the death of civilization; it always led to bloat and overspending. Bruno was entirely convinced that the German government could axe a solid 50% of the German Federal Government and its employees, and the Reich could still function as it was supposed to, if not increase in overall efficiency. And if the German Reich had these problems, then the old government from the world he had previously lived in was plagued with it to a fatal degree. It was perhaps because Maximilian was one such useless individual that Bruno just couldn't find the ability to respect the man, even if they were related. Actually, their blood relation was perhaps an even greater reason that his opinion of his elder brother was right on the border of the outright despicable. While Maximilian looked down on Bruno, believing the man had brought shame to their family for marrying a bastard, Bruno himself thought the same of Maximilian, only for a very different reason. And it was the fact that Maximilian was just utterly useless as a human being. His worth and value were so little that Bruno would quite frankly use the man as cannon fodder if he could. At least his death could prove useful in shielding someone far more valuable from a similar fate. It was with all of this in mind that Bruno approached his other two brothers, Ludwig and Kurt, and hugged them both, saying a lot of flattery while ignoring Maximilian entirely. "Ludwig, Kurt, I'm glad you could make it. I hope it wasn't too much to ask you both to come all this way to celebrate my little girl's birthday." Bruno did not even dignify Maximilian with a single glance, instead conversing with his other two brothers as if he didn't exist in the slightest. Something which, of course, only caused the man to become sullen and bitter. Meanwhile, Ludwig and Kurt were quick to accept Bruno's friendly statements, while also trying to diffuse whatever bomb the man was trying to detonate between himself and their elder brother. "Relax, I always enjoy a drive out to the country. The biggest hassle would have had to be the security. But I understand your reasons for going through such lengths. I'm glad we made it in time; my daughters always enjoy spending time with yours. Anyway, Bruno, Max wanted to have a word with you. He says he has stumbled across a good investment opportunity and wanted to see if you were perhaps interested?" At the mention of his elder brother's name, and the fact that the man had come to him for money, Bruno sighed and rolled his eyes, bluntly making a remark that he knew was not exactly kind and loud enough that Maximilian could easily overhear it. "Of course it's about money; why else would the useless twat put the two of you up to this? Has he already spoken to Father or our elder brothers about this matter?" Ludwig and Kurt were smart enough to know that Bruno was using his father and his elder brothers as a way to figure out if Maximilian was simply trying to scam him or not. Because obviously, if this was a legitimate investment opportunity, either of those three would come before him. And if he did go to their father or their two eldest brothers, and the three of them rejected Max, then it could only mean that whatever Maximilian was trying to get him to invest in was at worst a bad offer and at best an outright scam. Ludwig and Kurt were just about to answer the question when Maximilian's impatience reached its limit, forcing his way into the conversation as he adjusted his tie, trying his best to act friendly while masking the fury contained within his eyes. "If you want to know whether or not I brought this opportunity to anyone else, then I assure you that you, little brother, are the first man I thought of. After all, you have done quite well for yourself these last few years, turning the small fortune that Franz gave you into a sizable profit. Why wouldn't I seek your investment before anyone else?" Bruno narrowed his eyes at Max's words. Though it was subtle, Bruno detected the intentional insult contained between the lines of what he had said. Franz didn't "give" Bruno a small fortune. He paid Bruno a small fortune as proper compensation for the work Bruno had done designing various weapons for their family's company that had already netted them a massive profit. Whether it was that initial payment or all the wealth he had received since via his various investments and enterprises, it was insulting to say that the current fortune he had was merely the result of a handout. Sure, Bruno may already have an understanding of how the future markets of the world would go and what trends they would follow, which gave him a monumental advantage over his competitors. But he hadn't just sat on his ass and collected the money. A lot of work went into making himself one of the wealthiest men in the world. Much of his free time was spent managing these affairs, so much so that it was almost like a second job. Because of this, Bruno frowned, but he did not immediately fire back at Maximilian. After all, there was a very small chance that Maximilian had actually stumbled upon something worthwhile, and even if it was such a minute possibility that most people would rather spit in his face for the satisfaction. Bruno was intelligent enough to put aside whatever hostile emotions he may be currently feeling and entertain his brother's "offer," at least long enough to discover what it was all about. If it turned out to be a scam or just something foolhardy altogether, Bruno would then lash out at the man for his insults and, more importantly, for wasting time on what he considered to be a very important day. Hence why he ultimately bit his tongue before inviting the man into his office. "Alright, fine, I'll give you thirty minutes of my time, but not a moment more. Today is a rather important day for my family, and I can't be gone for too long. Let's head into my office." Maximilian had a rather smug expression on his face as he followed Bruno out from the gardens and into his palace-like mansion. Meanwhile, Ludwig and Kurt looked at each other with somber gazes, believing that whatever private discussion was about to be had between their two brothers was going to end with a gruesome and brutal scene. Hence why they sighed heavily and shook their heads before ultimately Ludwig was quick to act. "I'll go find Heidi and give her a heads up; you go get our father…" Kurt did not say a word; rather, he silently nodded his head in agreement before the two men went running off. They had roughly thirty minutes at most, after which Bruno would most likely tell Maximilian to suck a fat cock before a fight broke out. And if that happened, there was no telling what lengths Bruno would go to in order to teach his arrogant, spoiled, wastrel of an older brother a valuable and painful lesson—one that he may never forget.